For Want of a Hat
by Tusk Act IV
Summary: "Yes, the original may not have known, but the clone now bore the same emotions and feeling the original wore when she created it. Only to a higher degree"
1. Chapter 1

It was little known fact that the ex-student council president liked gardening. Even after many fights that led to losses, covert missions ending in failure, and more brainstorming than needed, it was only after a certain tense operation that the SSS were able to find out about it at all. Although Otanashi Yuzuru was one of few, if not the only one who thought that the SSS' enemy having a hobby like gardening was normal.

Indeed it could be said that the girl known as Tenchi to the SSS', or simply Tachibana Kanade liked gardening. She did it both for stress relief and for the fun of it as well. Worry over her vegetables could even distract her from what was happening in the school. So after a few days of losing her status as Student Council president and being locked up she decided that she had earned some much-needed gardening.

The proclaimed angel had expected a day full of gardening by her lonesome self at the school's botanical garden.

'_Break the rules all you want' _

…what she didn't expect was that the boy who she was locked up with would invite her to go fishing.

As the boy she knew as Otonashi Yuzuru took her gloved hand, she couldn't help but allow the boy to drag her along, allowing her straw hat to fall to the ground.

Holding her hand, Otonashi wondered why he brought Tenshi, the battalion's nemesis' along. Some of the SSS would put it away as him being his friendly self. The more vocal males would probably say that Otanashi was into those kinds of girls. Otonashi knew that it both points weren't true. Although Tachibana is kind of cute, with her monotone voice, those silver locks, eyes with little emotion yet felt like they were bursting with them, that ponytail…

But he digresses.

'_Well, maybe I brought her because she looked so…lonely'_ thought Otanashi. He had learned how alone she was during his stay in the prison and it made him heel…uncomfortable. She looked like the only person in the world.

Just like his sister.

Otonashi paused mid-step, which caused his "passenger" to stop as well. The girl looked up at him with a questioning look but he didn't seem to notice. Both just stood in place for a while. It took a moment for Otonashi to break the silence.

"Ah! Sorry about that, Tachibana." apologized Otonashi. His memories were still new to him and just thinking about them still made him shake a bit. "I just remembered something."

He turned to the girl and but something made him pause about her appearance.

He blinked once. Twice.

Then finally: "Hm? Where's your hat?" 

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><p>The walk back to the botanical gardens was a silent one. Otanashi was still thinking about his forgotten memories, while Tachibana was always silent in the first place. He didn't know when, but he had stopped holding on to Tachibana's hand. Maybe, it was because she was already following him.<p>

When they did get back, the straw hat was still on the ground from when it fell. As the ex-student council president , went to pick it up, Otonashi took the time to look at the flowers. He bent down close to one cluster. They were bright, yellow and full of life, sunflowers.

"Oy Tachibana!" called over the orange haired boy as he examined the flowers closer

The girl didn't reply, but did walk over to him, straw hat held in both hands.

"Do you really take care of all these?" Otonashi, finished with his examination, stood up and faced the white-haired girl.

"Yes" replied Tachibana with the same monotone she always seemed to use.

Otonashi then turned his head from one side to the other, taking in the full vastness of the gardens. "Just by yourself?"

"Yes. Today I was going to do some weeding and various other things."

'_All of this by herself?! It must take a whole day to do all of this…'_ thought Otonashi. _'Is it alright to really alright to bring her along? But she looks so lonely…'_

"Ah, then it would be bad for me to bring you fishing then…" Otonashi rubbed the back of his head and looked away a bit. "If only there was a way for you to be in two places at once…"

"...there is." was the soft, elegant reply, of the girl called angel.

"Eh? Really!?" exclaimed Otonashi. '_Although,_' he thought in his head _'considering what else she has done, should I really be surprised?'_

"Harmonics. It allows me to split my body," she explained.

"S-seriously?"

"Yes"

'_Scary' _Otonashi imagined having to fight not just one but two Angels. The SSS probably wouldn't last 20 minutes. He wanted to think more about what other powers did this girl in front of him have but for now there was something more important to deal with.

"Um..Tachibana" Otonashi began. "Let's go fishing today. But the next time you want to go gardening, call me up and I'll join you."

"Eh?" The girl looked up at him and although her face barely changed but her tone gave away her surprise.

"And not just me, but the others will come as well. We'll have all the gardens fixed up in no time." Otonashi took the straw hat and placed it on Tachibana's head. "Let's have fun together, alright?"

The white-haired beauty didn't say a word. She looked down making the hat cover up her face, but Otonashi could still notice a dust of pink on her pale cheeks. She then took a step back and whispered "Harmonics."

To Otonashi's surprise, what seemed like another Tachibana stepped out of the original's body, face still covered like the original's. With both looking down, he could barely see the difference. What he did see though was that the original now had her hand outstretched.

'_Is that a yes?'_ Grinning Otonashi took the girl's hand and they both ran off in silence, leaving only a clone and the flowers. 

* * *

><p>The clone of Tachibana Kanade could only watch as the original and the boy known as Otonashi Yuzuru ran off. It was just newly born but it could not help but feel a strong emotion.<p>

Maybe it was the feeling a new-born has when it is born into the world, only to have its mother leave it.

Maybe it was the feeling of disdain, watching the original run-off and have fun with _Otonashi Yuzuru _while she was left_._

Or maybe it was the feeling of wanting to feel up _Otonashi Yuzuru's _derriere

Yes, the original may not have known, but the clone now bore the same emotions and feeling the original wore when she created it. Only to a higher degree.

The girl known as Tachibana Kanade liked gardening. But as the clone watched the original and _Otonashi Yuzuru _run off, she knew that she may have found something she liked better than gardening. 

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Hey Guys! Tusk here. This is my first fanfic ever. Sorry about the word count, I find it really hard to increase it. I got this idea from a picture I saw in Danbooru. Anyways I hope you guys liked it and I'll try to update soon. Ciao!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I own none of the character nor the series itself.**

* * *

><p>It was getting dark already when the SSS decided to wrap everything up. The impromptu mass school feeding had been a success which had left smiles and full stomachs to not just the students but of course the battlefront itself.<p>

It also left a huge stack of plates, utensils, and fish, or with their size, monster bones. Although it would have been easier to have just left the mess in the field and let the school fix itself like always, for some reason, everyone decided to clean, rinse, and wash everything.

It was mostly the feeling of wanting to finish whatever they started, of hard work till the end , or something like that was the speech Hinata had to spout out to prevent the rest of the battalion from walking out.

But in the end, the only thing mattered was that everyone stayed. Whether they actually cleaned and took the job seriously was another matter altogether.

Otonashi Yuzuru was currently washing the dishes with the fountains outside the school. Although it was already night, there were still leftover things to clean and Otonashi was on rinsing duty.

Yuzuru was having a good day so far. Well, a relatively good day. Any day where he didn't die or get involved in at least two life threatening situations was a day he'd consider good.

Thinking about it again, he'd have to say the day was actually a great and rewarding day. The SSS was able to complete a mission without major casualties. He had also made an attempt to reach out to Tachib-no Kanade and she had even accepted.

'Yep, things are pretty good,' Otonashi concluded as he let the water rinse off the dirt on the plate in his hands.

"Hey man!" Hinata approached the washing station with a pile of dishes in his hands. "I got more coming alright?"

"Sure," replied Yuzuru, although he was now wiping the plate in his hands with a white cloth. The orange-haired boy didn't even have to turn his head to confirm his friend drop of the plates with an accompanying clink.

With a verbal farewell and the pitter patter of feet, Hinata left Yuzuru to his job. He just continued wiping the current dish. Finished, he looked into the reflection of his face on the now clean plate when...

_"Jiiiiiiiiii"_

'T-This is...' Otonashi turned his head so fast that to anyone looking it would have looked as if he broke his neck. Considering that he actually couldn't die, it was a high possibility that he could have.

But now was not the time to be thinking about the possibilities of him dying from his neck snapping, his life could end before that all could happen!

Yuzuru hastily scanned the area behind him, looking for the source of what he felt earlier.

To his right, there was nothing but the school. Not a single NPC could be out by this time and he didn't spot anyone around the area

To his left, there were the others still cleaning up. All of them looked like they were too busy to even give him a glance. Everyone was either picking up trays or holding them up. Especially Shiina, as she seemed to be attempting the world record of balancing plates on her broom.

Directly behind him, there was just the empty field and some blinking light posts

'Did i imagine that?' Yuzuru took one last wary glance before turning back to the faucet.

"May I help?"

"Gah!" A surprised yelp managed to make its way out of Yuzuru's mouth. He quickly turned to the source of the sound.

"K...Kanade?"

There at his side, seeming to appear out of thin air, was Tachibana Kanade. She seemed to still be wearing the straw hat she had on when she went gardening and fishing. Although, Yuzuru had no idea how it stayed on her head when they were all in the air back then.

"Help," answered the girl, unaware, or completely ignoring, his shock.

"W-what?" Spluttered out Yuzuru, still reeling from the scare

"The plates" the girl replied pointing to dishes in the sink. "Let me help."

"Yeah…sure." Yuzuru calmed himself. It wouldn't do to be so fidgety. Wasn't it normal for Kanade to rarely make a sound anyways?

Taking a deep breath, he calmed himself and stepped a bit to the side to giver her space. Wordlessly, the girl stepped forward and grabbed a plate.

The two washed the dishes in silence. They formed a routine where Kanade would wash them with water and soap while Yuzuru wiped them dry.

'Maybe I should say something' thought Yuzuru as he took a glance at Kanade who was busy grabbing another plate from the pile Hinata brought over. 'Should I ask her about that feeling I had back there?"

"Ah"

The moment was broken by a stream of water. Kanade had increased the power of the faucet which, with the way she was holding the plate, made the stream of water bounce of the plate and completely drench Yuzuru's upper body.

The girl quickly shut off the faucet but the damage had been done already. Yuzuru turned his back to Kanade to inspect his body.

"Crap" Yuzuru was completely drenched to his under shirt. His blazer was heavy due to the water as well.

A light breeze blew through him, making him involuntarily shudder. He had to change or he'd catch a cold. Could their bodies even catch a cold when they couldn't die?

Whatever the case, he had to do a change of clothes. Where did they get an extra uniform? Maybe Yuri would-*tug*

Yuzuru's thoughts came to a stop as he felt a tugging on his wet blazer. Looking down, he saw Kanade, although from his position it was mainly just her straw hat. She was gripping the two sides of his blazer with each hand holding a fistful of his button up as well.

"Um, Kanade?" Otonashi tried to move but Kanade's grip on his clothes was like a vice.

"There...There something wrong?"

If any of his struggling were bothering her, it didn't show. After more useless struggling from Yuzuru, his captor finally spoke but what she said sent a shiver down his spine that had nothing to do with the cool breeze.

"The reason you are wet is my own. I will make it up to you. First, you may catch a cold in these clothes. Let me help you with that."

Before Yuzuru could even understand what she meant by helping, she was already moving. With a surprising amount of power for such light and thin arms, the girl known as Tenchi pulled apart his button up, sending water and buttons flying everywhere.

'Wha...' One would think being there was a daily limit to how many times someone could be shocked. If there was, Otonashi Yuzuru had yet to reach it but he was pretty close.

His current situation involved him being topless and dripping with water with his blazer and now button less undershirt hanging by his wrists. With a vice grip on his soaked clothes, it felt like the girl, who was about half his size, was using them as makeshift restraints. Well, with how he couldn't move his arms any more, he'd say they were pretty effective.

Luckily, Yuzuru snapped out of his dangerous trail of thoughts by an odd sound coming from Kanade.

'Is she...panting?"

"Haahh...haahhh...Haahhh" Indeed, coming from the one known as Tenshi were the sounds of heavy breathing. She didn't seem to be out of breath.

For some reason, his instincts told him he was in danger although he didn't feel like he was going to die.

The only other time he had felt this was when he had given Hatsune a volume of a manga called Kiss x Sis.

He needed to do something!

"Kanade?"

Struggle

"Kanade...san?"

Struggle struggle

"Tenchi-sama?"

Struggle struggle struggle

No dice. Her grip was too tight and too strong.

"Otonashi...Yuzuru" breathed out Kanade slowly as if tasting the way his name would leave her small mouth. She moved herself closer to him and her captive couldn't help gasp at the contrast on the warmth of her body pressed against his cold one.

The wind took this opportunity to blow through both of them, consequently blowing off the straw hat off Kanade's head. She didn't seem to make any move to recover the hat which allowed Otonashi to have a good look on her face.

'This is...' Otonashi gulped 'kind of dangerous'

Slanted, glazed over red eyes. Cheeks slightly glowing pink. Small lips that were open yet seemingly invitt-wait red eyes?

Putting all strange thoughts aside, he took another look and found crimson where He expected yellow.

"You...you're not Kanade!" The imposter just raised her head and looked into Yuzuru's eyes and, as if to confirm his accusation, smiled.

Normally, the act of smiling would be odd enough for the silent Kanade, but with how full of mischief it was just made it truly look out of place.

It still made his heart skip a beat though.

"You...you're the clone aren't you?" Yuzuru tried to back away but the clone would just move close the distance. "From the garden."

"Correct, Yuzuru Otonashi." The red-eyed fake moved her head close to Otonashi's own. She was close enough that he could feel her breath on his lips. "Do you want a reward for being able to remember me?"

With one small move, she would have captured the adolescent's lips.

She would have but she stopped to turn her head back, only to have three bullets ram into her temple.

It wouldn't be a lie to say that Nakamura Yuri was the best shot in the whole battalion.

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><p><strong>AN: I guess I'll stop there. It should have been longer but I've been holding this chap up for way too long. The main problem was how odd Harmonics works.<strong>

**If all the clones were aggressive due to Kanade's last command, why was the clone she summoned to activate Absorb so bitchy as well?**

**What exactly was the endgame of the clones in capturing Kanade?**

**Why didnt the SSS tie up the clone when both Angels were incapacitated? Although this could be answered that they were in a hurry. **

**For the first two questions, for me, the clones just never really liked the original. Maybe they were showed her dislike and frustration of the SSS and even herself? Who knows. I'm actually sure that the clones were the ones who made the Absorb skill due to how painful it was. I think not even Kanade knew how Harmonics worked as she attacked the clone instead of Using Absorb. It was probably her first time using it back at the river.**

**So yeah. Sorry for the super late update! Tell me what you guys think.**

**Ciao!**


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